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For sheer profligacy (not just piano music), Niels Viggo Bentzon takes some beating. The BBC broadcasted some of his piano sonatas some time ago, and they aren't bad.

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"I don't play accurately - anyone can play accurately - but I play with wonderful expression. As far as the piano is concerned, sentiment is my forte. I keep science for Life."

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"I don't play accurately - anyone can play accurately - but I play with wonderful expression. As far as the piano is concerned, sentiment is my forte. I keep science for Life."

I'm pleased to see the number of mentions for Liapunov in this thread: I think it's incomprehensible how neglected his Transcendentals are.

Another neglected composer is Karl Tausig. Not truly a great, but how many are? Plus he died at 29; a great loss to the music world. Here's possibly his most famous original work: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbGHoPttwhQ

I'm pleased to see the number of mentions for Liapunov in this thread: I think it's incomprehensible how neglected his Transcendentals are.

Incomprehensible, really?

Surely you jest. None of them remotely match the genius of Liszt's etudes, though Liapunov's piano writing is very effective, and yes, difficult. The music looks impressive on the printed page -Amy Beach's music comes to mind here- but there is little evidence of anything remotely original.

Liapunov was just another Russian, amongst many, who breathed the winds of Rimsky-Korsakov and Borodin, but basically re-wrote their music. Listen to his two symphonies. He should have been sued for plagiarism.

I'm pleased to see the number of mentions for Liapunov in this thread: I think it's incomprehensible how neglected his Transcendentals are.

Incomprehensible, really?

Surely you jest. None of them remotely match the genius of Liszt's etudes, though Liapunov's piano writing is very effective, and yes, difficult. The music looks impressive on the printed page -Amy Beach's music comes to mind here- but there is little evidence of anything remotely original.

Liapunov was just another Russian, amongst many, who breathed the winds of Rimsky-Korsakov and Borodin, but basically re-wrote their music. Listen to his two symphonies. He should have been sued for plagiarism.

+1

A semi-professional performance of a Lyapunov etude I heard this summer was one of the dullest things I've heard in recent memory. Not on my list of "just below the greats."

wr, thanks so much again for taking the time to recommend the music. The Sessions sonata is great, I haven't been able to check out his other works yet. The Krenek and Markevitch variations are great - up there with some of the "standards" that are typically played. I'd forgotten about the cutoff in the final fugue as you had mentioned, and that was quite disappointing (really? so close to the finish?) Reminded me of a video of Leontyne Price singing Signore Ascolta that cuts off early - now that's just mean!! I still go back today and hope the outcome will be different, but no dice. The Honegger also enjoyable.

-Daniel

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Currently working on:-Dane Rudhyar's Stars from Pentagrams No 3

Kapustin is getting a lot of attention actually. His works frequently appear on competition and recital programs these days. Not to mention all the amateur videos put up on youtube of his etudes. And yes, he does pop up on the Pianist Corner from time to time.

I just participated in a concert where the music of Boris Lyatoshynsky was played, and he was described in the programme as one of the greatest Ukrainian composers. I couldn't find a mention of him on this forum, so here's a link to his Sonata No.1 from that concert.

Not neglected at all is his setting of the Anglican Canticles in F -continually done in the UK- but his songs and piano sonata are indeed neglected. His piano concerto was once popular at The Proms, not appreciated these days so much, but it is an incredible piece of music.

Ireland's political beliefs have lost their pungency and relevance, really rather silly today, though he was at least honest about it.

More interesting is the chapter in the book 'Queer Episodes in Music and Modern Identity'. Pre-Stonewall history makes for very uncomfortable reading, and Ireland hid from us his deepest secrets.

Many thanks for posting the Ireland Concerto, Argerichfan. Having not heard it since my youth - long before studying his solo piano music - it's really interesting to experience the musical language and idioms of the solo works (especially those of the 1920s) with the added dimension of orchestral timbres and serving the large-scale organizational expectations of a concerto. It'll require many listenings, though, to form a judgment as to whether the work succeeds as satisfyingly as the solo pieces, where Ireland was unquestionably on home ground.

Wieniawski and I share the same birthday, July 10. Interestingly, he also wrote a lengthy Bm sonata like Liszt. Unlike Liszt, however, he gets no love for his work. Shame. What's confusing, though, is the series "The Romantic Piano Concerto Vol. 52" lists his Gm Piano Concerto as Op. 20. In other recordings, as well as Wikipedia, his piano concertos are listed as No. 1 in F#m, Op. 14 and No. 2 in Dm, Op. 22. So what is this Gm, Op. 22 business which I possess as the aforementioned Bm sonata? Looks like a job for Sherlock Holmes.

Wieniawski and I share the same birthday, July 10. Interestingly, he also wrote a lengthy Bm sonata like Liszt. Unlike Liszt, however, he gets no love for his work. Shame. What's confusing, though, is the series "The Romantic Piano Concerto Vol. 52" lists his Gm Piano Concerto as Op. 20. In other recordings, as well as Wikipedia, his piano concertos are listed as No. 1 in F#m, Op. 14 and No. 2 in Dm, Op. 22. So what is this Gm, Op. 22 business which I possess as the aforementioned Bm sonata? Looks like a job for Sherlock Holmes.

Sherlock not needed - you are just confusing the Wieniawski brothers, Józef and Henryk.

Surely it's got to be Handel? Whether people like him or not, he's widely accepted as one of the greats, the way many of the others mentioned on here aren't. But there's such a prejudice against him, one that even I can't help sharing to some extent. For example, I have Richter playing 2 whole CDs of his Keyboard Suites as part of the 'Icon' box. There are some insanely beautiful and exciting pieces on there, but I don't listen to it much. Often when I do put it on, after a while I tend to think: okay, that's enough Handel! And then I feel bad because I know he deserves better.

Here's a real-life scenario that that probably illustrates his current rep quite well:

I'm playing the Richter CDs.

Someone comes in. "Oh, I love this! Could you burn a disc for me?"

"Sure, I'll burn a disc of this Handel for you."

"Oh, it's Handel? I thought it was Bach?"

After that they never remind me to burn a disc for them, and I get to save a disc.

(Of course in reality I never would have burnt that disc for them, because that would be like stealing )

Now I'm not saying that Handel is the same thing as Bach, but still. And I wonder sometimes what the grounds of this prejudice might be?

Lyapunov/Ljapoenoff/Liapunov it must be, he wrote 12 études d'ex.tr. (op.11) to follow up Liszt's 12, and did a good job: truly Lisztian in scope and difficulty, but very russian at that, and he wrote a wonderful sonata (op.27), based on the architecture of Liszt but, as in the études, he built a Russian Orthodox cathedral on the Lisztian example, the first really russian sounding sonata ever, really! Some good variationworks, a darling sonatina, why isn't he played more often: it's hard, and to go through that much trouble, well, most prefer the well known names, let's do the whole 'chopin/schumann/liszt/rachmaninoff/etc' rep. It might be a good idea to be adventurous and just try, and also play Medtner, and Glazunov, and Alkan, and Rzwvzckqlrtpszewsky, but don't forget Lyapunov!

This is a GREAT post. I completely agree; I only know Lyapunov for his choral/religious music, but it's the kind of music you stop what you're doing to pay attention to. Lyapunov is thick musicking.

Glazunov wrote a saxophone sonata!

Medtner doesn't get much love -- the forgotten Russian Romantic -- but he has some nice shorter pieces (Fairy Tales?).

Surely it's got to be Handel? Whether people like him or not, he's widely accepted as one of the greats, the way many of the others mentioned on here aren't. But there's such a prejudice against him, one that even I can't help sharing to some extent.

[...]

Now I'm not saying that Handel is the same thing as Bach, but still. And I wonder sometimes what the grounds of this prejudice might be?

Schoenberg was very anti-Händel / pro-Bach on the same, purely musical grounds that the Nazis were when they adopted Händel as an approved state composer over Bach: simplicity! Some Händel can be great, but almost all of the Bach that I have heard has been infinitely richer than Händel. Just my (and Schoenberg's) two cents.

Originally Posted By: Plowboy

William Grant Still? He's definitely neglected, and undeservedly so.

I enjoyed this, to a point! His idiom feels a bit dated, and that it might not hold up to repeated listenings, but I haven't heard anything quite like it, so it's a very nice a palette cleanser!

Originally Posted By: Dwscamel

Originally Posted By: dolce sfogato

Rzwvzckqlrtpszewsky

Of course, hit up Rzwvzckqlrtpszewsky .

Rzweverklpylytcbzewski is a wonderful composer!

Okay, contribution time: Roger Redgate's Eidos. About a minute long, and I feel like it would make a great encore. I just bought the (two page) score for this today on the basis of Nicholas Hodges' powerful and affecting performance:

I haven't followed the entire thread, but it seems some of the russian avant-garde guys aren't mentioned much. Roslavets, Feinberg, Mosolov, people? Some very valuable stuff there, just discovering Roslavets piano sonatas.

Karol Szymanowski,I'm little surprised that nobody has mentioned him yet...

Perhaps because he hasn't been entirely neglected here? At least I personally have tried to keep the discussion up about his music in various threads, haha

Not to mention that you have posted some very fine performances of his work!

For Polish composers who are really neglected here, how about Artur Malawski? His Symphonic Etudes for piano and orchestra should be better known, I think. As should the Toccata and Fugue in the Form of Variations, also for piano and orchestra - I can't even find a recording of this, although there is a rumor that there once was one. I wish somebody would upload it to YouTube, if it exists. Considering how rare it is, I am surprised that once, decades ago, I heard/saw it on a television broadcast, and still can remember how taken I was with it. The Symphonic Etudes are there already...

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Originally Posted By: pianoslacker

Surely it's got to be Handel? Whether people like him or not, he's widely accepted as one of the greats, the way many of the others mentioned on here aren't...

Now I'm not saying that Handel is the same thing as Bach, but still. And I wonder sometimes what the grounds of this prejudice might be?

I think Handel's greatness has nothing to do with his keyboard music which I don't find very great. I think there are good reasons why it's almost never performed with the exception of a handful of works.

I think many of the composers on this thread may fall in the neglected category but hardly in the great category.

I think many of the composers on this thread may fall in the neglected category but hardly in the great category.

Well, I for one am fairly tired of the approach to music history where we have one Genius Composer carrying the torch of Western Classical Music until the next Genius Composer comes along and takes it over. Once you start looking under the surface, there was so much more going on. Early 20th century french music is so much more than just Ravel and Debussy...to give but one example. Also, it's only fair to point out that composers under the Great category often found inspiration from others around them, however less great they might have been. Just to give a example, a highly talented pianist I know, currently a visiting fellow at Harvard where he's been working with Robert Levin, once came across a little-known C minor piece (sonata perhaps, dont remember) by a mostly forgotten viennes classical composer that started with a motif close to identical to Mozart's C minor fantasy. After the closure on the dominant in the 2nd bar, the theme is re-stated one whole-tone down...As far as I remember, it was written in Vienna and pre-dates the Mozart piece by a year or two. Coincidence? Like Stravinsky said about great composers...they don't borrow, they steal.